Nursery World - Babies choose healthy eating

Babies that feed themselves from the start of weaning are likely to eat more healthily and be an appropriate weight than babies who are spoon-fed purees, according to a new study.

Researchers from the University of Nottingham asked more than 150 parents of children between the ages of 20 months and six-and-a-half to complete a questionnaire about their children’s weaning style and food preferences.

Ninety-two of the children had been allowed to feed themselves with finger foods and 63 had been spoon-fed pureed foods throughout the weaning process.

The findings indicated that children who fed themselves (baby-led weaning) liked carbohydrates more than children who had been spoon-fed. Carbohydrates proved to be the favourite food of the baby-led weaning group, whereas children who were spoon-fed preferred sweet foods.

This was despite the fact that children in the spoon-fed group were offered carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables, proteins and whole meats-such as lasagne, more often than the babies who fed themselves.

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included